Thief gets 4 years for stealing Salvation Army kettle in Toledo

TOLEDO (AP) -- An Ohio man has been sentenced to four years in prison for shoving a Salvation Army bell ringer to the ground and swiping one of the charity's red kettles.

TOLEDO -- An Ohio man has been sentenced to four years in prison for shoving a Salvation Army bell ringer to the ground and swiping one of the charity's red kettles.

Shawn Krieger pleaded no contest to robbery two weeks ago. A Toledo judge sentenced him yesterday and noted that Krieger had a prior theft conviction.

Police say Krieger told the Salvation Army bell ringer in late November that he hated Christmas and then grabbed the kettle stuffed with hundreds of dollars. The bell ringer tried to pull the kettle away and gave chase until police say the thief tossed the kettle into the back of a stolen pickup truck and sped away.